Central Dogma
by Meicdon13
Summary: Zakuro is a scientist for the IEEO and Gojyo is one of the mercenaries hired to keep him and a fellow scientist safe while they explore a promising planetoid. They get on each other's nerves often, with interesting results.


**Pairing(s):** Gojyo x Zakuro  
><strong>Warnings:<strong> None  
><strong>Author's notes:<strong> Sort of inspired by _The Green Brain _by Frank Herbert (though I haven't finished reading it yet). I know the ending's rushed but uhuhuhu real life ;_; Alien life forms are from the _Ben 10_ series because I tried and failed at making up aliens. The Zakuro in this fanfic is how he appears in the anime—lavender hair and green eyes.

* * *

><p><strong>Central Dogma<strong>

Li Touten, the head of the ecological reclamation department, gave the young scientist in front of him a once-over before he spoke. The candidate didn't look like much and to be honest, he wouldn't have been his first choice for the mission. A lack of field experience was just one item on the list of things that made Zakuro unqualified. But there was a shortage of manpower, and Nii had mentioned in passing that he'd be a good fit for the job.

"Zakuro, you have been chosen to accompany Dr. Nii to the new prospective planetoid colony," Li Touten said calmly, suppressing a smirk at the delighted look that appeared on Zakuro's face. "As you know, the study of the planetoid's flora and fauna is the main purpose of this expedition. It's going to be a small group and the entire thing will most likely last about a month on the planet. Do you accept the assignment?"

Even before Zakuro opened his mouth to reply, the answer was pretty obvious. Of course, anyone in their right mind would have jumped at the opportunity. It wasn't often that the Interplanetary Ecological Exploration Organization chose rookies to participate in exploratory projects of potential colonies. Each new colony provided a veritable gold mine of new foods, drugs, and materials for exploitation on the interplanetary market, and those fortunate enough to get their names attached to such discoveries pretty much had it made for the rest of their careers.

"When do I start?" Zakuro asked.

* * *

><p>"This is going to be exciting," Hakkai commented, smiling amiably at the rest of the group as they followed their official-looking guide down the hallways of IEEO's research building.<p>

"It's gonna be my first time off-planet!" Goku exclaimed, practically bouncing in delight. "D'you think we'll get to see any cool aliens, Sanzo?"

"I'm already looking at one."

"That's mean! I'm not an alien, Sanzo!"

Gojyo smirked. "You sure about that? 'Cause you definitely remind me of that space monkey in the zoo."

"Not funny!"

Gojyo fended off a punch from Goku and retaliated by giving him a noogie. They were all excited about the upcoming assignment, and were even rowdier than usual. Though it wasn't Gojyo's first time off-planet, it had been a long time since his last challenging job. Accompanying scientists to an unexplored colony to provide protection sounded pretty challenging to him!

Finally, their guide stopped outside a conference room and knocked on the closed doors. There was a slightly muffled, "Come in," before the guide opened the doors and stepped aside to let Gojyo and the others into the room.

Li Touten was standing near one end of the giant table that dominated the room. He was talking with two men in lab coats and looking at some papers. Gojyo didn't know much about Li Touten aside from the fact that he was a higher-up in the organization, but he got the impression that he wasn't the type that Gojyo would willingly hang around, if given the chance.

"Sir, I've brought the men," the guide said.

Li Touten looked up from his papers. "There you are." He gestured towards Gojyo's group and said to the scientists, "Gentlemen, these four men will be your bodyguards for the duration of the assignment. Sanzo is the leader of their crew." Li Touten gestured towards the blond.

One of the scientists, a dark-haired man with eyeglasses, grinned at Sanzo. "Kouryuu, how's your dad doing?"

Sanzo scowled. "He's doing fine."

Li Touten looked at the scientist. "I didn't know you were already acquainted with Sanzo, Nii."

"Oh, his dad and I go _way_ back."

The conversation quickly turned to talk about preparations for the journey. Hakkai moved closer so he could join in while the other scientist quickly moved away, stepping closer to Gojyo and Goku. "I'm Zakuro," he said, sticking out a hand.

He wasn't bad looking, Gojyo mused. Zakuro's hair was held back by a headband, a couple of shorter locks falling across his forehead. Gojyo blinked in surprise when he met the other's gaze; Zakuro had a really mesmerizing pair of eyes. They were a shade of green that Gojyo hadn't come across before and he found himself staring at them for more than a few seconds.

Goku shook Zakuro's hand, smiling. "My name's Goku. And that's Gojyo, the pervert."

That snapped Gojyo out of his trance. "Watch what you're saying, punk," he snarled, giving Goku a sharp rap on his head.

"Does the truth hurt?" Goku laughed.

"Hardy har-har." Gojyo shook Zakuro's hand as well. "Like the kid said, my name's Gojyo."

"I'm sure it will be a pleasure working with you, gentlemen," Zakuro said. "I look forward to facing the various trials that this journey will present with you as my comrades!"

Goku glanced at Gojyo, an eyebrow raised in an, "Is this guy for real?" look. Gojyo thought that the weird talking wasn't _so _bad, especially since Zakuro wouldn't really need to speak when they fucked.

* * *

><p>Gojyo lifted a large box of supplies and carried it towards their ship. The box was heavier than he'd expected, and he staggered under its weight. He wobbled for a bit and ended up bumping into someone as he tried to regain his balance.<p>

"Watch where you're going, fool," someone snapped. "You could have done me an injury."

Peering around the edge of the box, Gojyo came face-to-face with a scowling Zakuro. "Sorry. I didn't see you there," he said sheepishly.

Zakuro harrumphed. "_Obviously_."

Gojyo frowned. "Hey, I already said sorry. No need to get your panties in a bunch."

Zakuro crossed his arms defensively, taking a half-step back away from Gojyo. "I will thank you to refrain from making unnecessary comments about my underwear."

"Maybe you should show me something more interesting than your underwear and I can make comments about that instead," Gojyo purred.

"Pervert!" Zakuro turned an incredible shade of red and stomped off.

"See ya later, princess!" Gojyo called after him. Lately, he'd taken to hitting on Zakuro just to piss him off. Ever since they'd been introduced, Zakuro'd been acting like he expected Gojyo to jump him at the slightest opening. It was irritating, to put it lightly, and Gojyo blamed Goku for the way the scientist behaved around him. It didn't help that Zakuro's flamboyant mannerisms and dramatic monologues had already annoyed Gojyo to the point where he wanted to strangle the scientist whenever he opened his mouth. He was like a one-man theatrical performance and while the monkey and Hakkai found it amusing, Gojyo agreed with Sanzo that he could live without the drama.

It was the last week of preparation before their departure. During that time, Sanzo and his men spent most of their time at the IEEO complex, stocking up on weapons and provisions and making sure that the ship they were going to use was properly fueled and cleaned. Zakuro and Nii, on the other hand, were busy making sure that all of the high-tech scientific equipment they were going to bring was in tip-top condition.

As the week wore on, it became increasingly obvious to Gojyo that despite his initial attraction to Zakuro, nothing was going to happen between them seeing how overly-dramatic and exaggerated the scientist was. It was especially irritating to him how well Zakuro and Goku got along. Gojyo could tell that he wasn't the only one who found the new dynamic duo irksome—Sanzo'd been smoking a lot more lately, and he was sure that it wasn't just because Nii kept asking for Sanzo's dad's new comm number either.

Still, a job was a job. He'd just have to make sure to stay out of Zakuro's way lest he end up doing the scientist bodily harm.

* * *

><p>Nii twirled his pen around his fingers as he waited for Li Touten to arrive. In his free hand, he held a book about the history of planetary colonization.<p>

_When Earth's landmasses became too crowded to support life, science made it possible for humans to live underwater. Scientists constructed sprawling cities under transparent domes just to accommodate the ever-growing human population. However, the time came when even the underwater cities did not have room for new generations._

_That was when science turned its sights onto the uninhabited planets spread throughout the galaxies. Space travel was drastically improved and brave individuals were sent off to explore the far reaches of the universe to look for possible colonies._

"Hn. You don't really have to be brave," he muttered absentmindedly to himself. "Sometimes you just need to be curious."

_A major problem encountered by the first planetary colonists was with the indigenous flora and fauna. For many years, the human response was to simply kill whatever posed a threat. It was Doctor Hwang who realized the consequences of such a course of action and put a stop to the practice, a move that met much political opposition._

A picture of Doctor Hwang was on the page. Nii tilted the book and closed one eye. "She looks like she'd be fun to play with."

The door to the conference room opened and Li Touten stepped inside. "Who does?" he asked.

Nii straightened up, taking his feet off of the table and putting down his book and pen. "It's nothing. I was just thinking out loud." He grinned. "Shall we get down to business, then?"

Li Touten sat down across the table. "I already have a few of the others in on the plan. But they're reminding me that they want constant updates." At that, he frowned and placed his hands on the table. "Updates that you're not giving."

"There haven't been any updates because nothing's happened yet." Nii propped up his chin in his hand. "I'll need at least one more specimen before I start with the gene splicing. I prefer to start working when all the materials are already at hand."

"Well, I hope that the project starts as soon as you come back from the trip. We can't afford any more delays. The riots and protests are becoming more frequent. I promised the investors that their sentinels would be delivered soon." Li Touten ran a hand through his hair in exasperation. "That Kougaiji is such a pain in the neck."

Nii pushed his glasses up, the light reflecting off of them. "I heard that he used to be the head of the IEEO's reclamation department, back when it was just the IEO."

"He used to be quite skilled at figuring out how to kill the most number of threatening life forms with the minimum amount of effort. Then he met some long-haired hippie who showed him the 'error of his ways'," Li Touten snorted.

Nii was hard-pressed not to laugh; he was sure that Koumyou would be amused to be referred to as a hippie. It was such an archaic term.

* * *

><p>"Are we there yet?" Goku whined. "I'm bored!"<p>

Hakkai looked up from his book. "I thought you were looking forward to getting off-planet, Goku." The two of them, along with Gojyo, were in the ship's kitchen, whiling away the time. Sanzo was off in his quarters being a grump, and the two scientists were in the medical bay.

"Yeah, but it's really boring! There's nothing to do!" Goku leaned back until the chair he was sitting in was only balanced on its hind legs then he placed his feet up on the table.

Gojyo reached over and shoved Goku in the chest, sending him sprawling onto the floor with a yelp. "Exciting enough for you, monkey?" he laughed.

Goku quickly got up and tackled Gojyo. "Bastard!"

"What'd you expect? It's not like this piece of junk's big enough or fancy enough for one of those indoor entertainment bays."

"Okay, enough of this." Hakkai put down his book and stood up. "Goku, you can help me prepare dinner. Gojyo, could you go find Sanzo and ask him to look at the starboard force fields? I think that last meteor field we passed through damaged them."

Hakkai watched as Gojyo left the kitchen and suppressed a laugh when the redhead gave Goku a noogie on his way out. "Smell ya later, space monkey," Gojyo said. Really, the man could be so childish sometimes.

* * *

><p>Gojyo took his time getting to Sanzo's room. Dinner was going to take a while to cook and he wasn't particularly eager to deal with princess sunshine while he was in one of his moods. Speaking of Sanzo's moods, Gojyo saw one reason for Sanzo's current irritation coming down the hall towards him.<p>

From what they'd gathered from conversations between Nii and Sanzo, the former was a friend—or at least an acquaintance—of the latter's dad. And Nii hadn't bothered keeping it a secret that he wanted to meet up with his old friend. Sanzo hadn't been forthcoming with Koumyou's contact details and Gojyo could see why; Nii gave off creepy vibes just standing there.

"Hello, Gojyo," Nii said, smiling slightly. A clipboard was tucked under one arm and his lab coat was slung over the other shoulder.

Gojyo acknowledged the greeting with a quick wave and was about to walk past the scientist when a hand reached out and took hold of his arm. "You want something?" he asked, resisting the urge to yank his arm away.

Nii smiled. It didn't quite reach his eyes. "You wouldn't happen to have seen Sanzo, would you?" He gave an exaggerated sigh. "He still won't give me Koumyou's comm number, so I was hoping he'd at least send a message for me."

"Uh, I'm actually looking for him right now. I'm not sure where he is, but I'll tell him to come find you when I see him." Gojyo hoped that Nii wouldn't get it into his head to come along with him. The man was just plain weird.

"Thank you, Gojyo. I'd appreciate that." Nii let go of Gojyo's arm and went on down the hallway.

* * *

><p>"Fool! Do you not realize what you've done?"<p>

"I think I saved your life, is what I think I've done."

Zakuro glared at Gojyo. "At the cost of this wonderful creature," he snapped. It was bad enough that headquarters had assigned Gojyo and his crew to accompany Zakuro and Nii during the expedition, but now the imbecilic redhead had actually killed—Zakuro paused in his mental rant to take a closer look at the dead animal at his feet—the imbecilic redhead had actually killed what looked like a blue spider-monkey hybrid.

"Look Doc, I was hired to keep you safe," Gojyo drawled, leaning against a tree. "If I'd let that thing eat you, then I wouldn't get paid."

Zakuro snorted contemptuously. "I am sure there are other ways for you to keep me safe _and_ spare the lives of any innocent creatures that we come across."

Gojyo rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah. C'mon. We need to get back to camp. Unless you wanna sleep out here?" His crimson eyes narrowed and a leer stretched across his face. "Just you and me and the beauty of nature?"

When they had first met, Zakuro had found Gojyo more than a bit attractive. But not only was the redhead an imbecile and a brute with no respect for life in all of its unique and wonderful forms, he was also an unbearable lecher. They'd all be better off without the beast. Sadly, out of his companions, it seemed that only Sanzo shared his sentiments on the matter.

Zakuro chose to ignore the blatant (and pathetic) attempt at seduction. "Let us make our way back to camp, and quickly." They'd gone out for some firewood while Sanzo and Goku had gone to stake a perimeter around their campsite. Hakkai had opted to stay behind to guard their equipment and Nii was off somewhere in the forest as well.

The walk back was filled with Gojyo cursing at various bits of flora that snagged at his clothes and Zakuro bemoaning his luck at having been partnered with him to look for firewood. "Cheer up," Zakuro muttered to himself. "You could have been partnered with Sanzo."

However, by the time they got back to camp, Zakuro was seriously contemplating stabbing Gojyo with an especially pointy stick and be done with it. After all, if the pervert expired, there would still be three bodyguards remaining for the rest of their stay on the planet. "If you do not desist, I shall tell Hakkai you have been cheating on him," Zakuro hissed threateningly.

Gojyo merely raised an eyebrow. "Dude. Hakkai and me aren't an item or anything. Guy's straight as an energy beam."

"I find that hard to believe."

"Sure he is. And he's not even my type, you know." Gojyo paused. "_You're _not even my type, either. I like the ladies just fine, but it takes a really specific kind of guy—"

"Ha! You could have fooled me," Zakuro interrupted, dumping his armful of wood onto the ground. "What with your continuous and unwanted advances!"

"Hey, man. I was just joking," Gojyo said. "I wouldn't sleep with you if you were the last humanoid guy on this planet."

"Oh? Then you would lie with a creature that did not even resemble a human?" Zakuro's nose wrinkled in disgust. "You are more foul than I thought you were."

Gojyo spluttered incoherently for a few seconds before he could answer. "I didn't mean it that way and you know it!"

"Will the two of you stop fighting like a couple of schoolgirls?" Sanzo yelled. He'd just returned to camp as well. Goku was right behind him, carrying the body of some dead animal with green skin.

"Did you _kill_ that?" Zakuro gasped, looking on in horror as Goku took out a long, wicked-looking knife.

Sanzo looked completely indifferent as he fished a cigarette out from his pocket and lit it up. "It attacked us, so I retaliated."

"Perhaps we can eat it?" Hakkai suggested as he approached them.

Sanzo looked at the animal carcass and prodded its hind leg with a booted foot, then looked over his shoulder and said to Goku, "Hey brat, do something useful and start skinning this. Even if it's not edible, the hide might be worth something."

Hakkai pulled a knife out of a sheath at his hip. "Let me do the skinning, Goku. You can take care of the innards afterwards. In the meanwhile, you and Gojyo start the campfire."

"Thanks, Hakkai!"

"Isn't the princess going to do anything?" Gojyo complained.

Sanzo blew smoke in Gojyo's direction. "I killed the thing already."

"I am surrounded by _barbarians_!" Zakuro wailed.

There was a rustle of underbrush and Nii emerged from the forest, stepping into the clearing where they had set up camp. "Surely you don't classify me as a barbarian, Dr. Zakuro. I think my PhD exempts me from being lumped together with them."

"Oh, Dr. Nii, thank heavens!" Zakuro clutched at the other man's sleeve. "We've been here for barely a week and they've killed three creatures already, and two of them just today!"

"Correct me if I'm wrong, but every time it's been for self-defense, right?" Nii asked, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. "So I don't see anything wrong with it." He patted Zakuro on the head as one would placate a small child, and grinned. "You have to get used to it. Part of the field experience."

Zakuro shot Nii a betrayed look before fleeing towards the cave near the clearing where they were keeping the research equipment and food supplies to keep them dry. Behind him, he heard Goku exclaim, "That's a lot of intestines for such a little guy."

"I don't see why you're surprised. Don't you have a bottomless pit for a stomach? And you're kinda scrawny."

"Asshole!"

"Perv's got a point, monkey."

"I need complete silence while I'm doing this. Unneeded noise might cause my hand to slip and my knife to cut someone."

"Barbarians," Zakuro moaned.

* * *

><p>Li Touten entered the code using the keypad beside the lab's door. The display turned green and the door slid open, letting a blast of cold air escape from within. He stepped into the room and the door closed silently behind him. Against the far wall of the room, Nii's specimens floated in large vats of fluid. An eerie green glow coming from the specimen vats was the only illumination in the laboratory.<p>

There were nine different creatures, each of them in their own vat. Li Touten had simply wanted to kill them and then preserve them, but Nii had said that the gene splicing worked best if he used living samples. It had been too expensive to keep the aliens alive and aware, but Nii had the idea to keep them in suspended animation.

Li Touten stopped in front of a vat containing a large crystalline creature, his hand pressed against the cold glass. The sentinels that he and Nii were creating were going to be the latest advancement in gene splicing technology. It didn't matter that it was illegal—Li Touten knew a lot of men who would be willing to pay through the nose for the creatures.

He smiled, the expression eerie in the dimly-lit room. And if he kept a few of them for himself, well, no one could blame him.

* * *

><p>It had been three weeks since the group had landed on the planetoid. To date, Goku had gotten lost in the forest five times because he always insisted on exploring it, Zakuro had thrown rocks at Gojyo, Sanzo had shot at Nii, and Hakkai had found a little white reptilian creature that he'd immediately adopted and named Jeep. Despite all the distractions, things had gone along smoothly and their departure date was coming up soon.<p>

The mission was exciting and it was interesting, but Gojyo was starting to feel suffocated. If it were only him and the rest of his team on the planet, he honestly wouldn't mind, but Nii and Zakuro were a whole different matter. The former had found out that one of his past colleagues had been Gojyo's older brother and wouldn't stop bugging Gojyo with questions about their childhood, while the latter still acted like Gojyo was going to eat him alive if he let his guard down.

It was on the first day of their final week on the planetoid that their daily routine of exploring the forest and cataloguing bio-info was disrupted. They were all at the campsite when a tall, red, humanoid alien with four arms burst through the foliage. It froze when it saw the group, its orange eyes narrowing before it grabbed a nearby boulder and hurled it at them.

Chaos erupted around the campsite. Zakuro immediately ran to the cave and hid there while Sanzo and his men attempted to kill the alien. Nii stood to one side and watched calmly, making mental notes of the alien's body structure. It would be a waste to let such a fine creature go to waste, especially since it seemed to fulfill the requirements he was looking for as the final specimen for the project.

_Well, why not?_ Nii tilted his head slightly, thinking of how best to incapacitate the alien without mortally wounding it.

* * *

><p>Gojyo grunted as he blocked the hulking red alien's fist with his energy staff. He pressed a button on the staff's side, releasing a surge of electricity that made the alien howl in pain. It retaliated by grabbing Gojyo around the waist with the rest of its arms and throwing him across the clearing.<p>

Gojyo landed roughly and skidded across the uneven ground, coming to a stop near the mouth of the cave they were using for storage. Zakuro was huddled inside, next to a box of food and a datalog machine. "Leave!" the scientist hissed. "You'll lead the beast right here!"

"You could at least lend a hand, you know," Gojyo snarled. He tried to stand up but almost immediately crumpled to the ground again, his ankle giving out. Shit—it felt like it was twisted. He tried to get up again, using his energy staff as a support. He wobbled unsteadily, unable to put any pressure on his left foot.

"Gojyo! Look out!"

Zakuro grabbed the back of Gojyo's shirt and yanked him deeper into the cave just as the red alien slammed against the side of the mountain above the mouth of the cave. It fell to the ground, disorientated but still managing to stay on his feet. It turned around slowly, eyes landing on where Gojyo and Zakuro had landed in a tangled pile of limbs.

"Do something!" Zakuro cried.

"What d'you expect me to do with a busted ankle?" Gojyo snapped. He tried to get up anyway, knowing that Zakuro was going to be completely useless unless Gojyo used him as a distraction. But he knew he wouldn't do that because while he didn't really like the guy, Gojyo wasn't going to let some macho alien beat him up.

The alien was about to step into the cave when a rock hit its head. More rocks continued to fall, quickly turning into an avalanche. Zakuro and Gojyo quickly scrambled further into the cave as the alien roared in pain and anger, the cascade of boulders driving it back. The walls of the cave began to shake as well, and Gojyo found himself being dragged underneath a workbench.

"Don't just lie there, you oaf," Zakuro huffed. "Get under the bench!"

* * *

><p>It was only a few minutes before the cave stopped shaking, but it felt longer. Zakuro slowly crawled out from underneath the workbench, his eyes watering and his throat irritated by the dust from the sudden rockslide. "The alien probably caused an avalanche when it hit the side of the mountain," Zakuro said, and then he sighed. <em>Just wonderful.<em> He was stuck in a dark and dirty cave with the lecher. He wondered what he'd done in his past life to deserve such horrid luck.

"Well, we need light. Can you find the globes?" Zakuro started to grope around in the dark, trying to remember where the box with the light globes was stored. After a few minutes of crawling around and hearing nothing from Gojyo, he snapped, "Are you just going to stay under that bench or are you going to help me?"

"Just … just a minute."

Zakuro frowned. There was something slightly off about how Gojyo sounded, but Zakuro pushed it from his mind as he focused on his search. He finally managed to locate the light globes and activated one, letting it float up to the roof of the cave. He blinked a couple of times in the sudden brightness and blinked some more when he saw Gojyo—the pervert was huddled into a ball underneath the workbench, face pressed against his knees and arms above his head.

"What are you doing?"

"Just shut up for a bit, okay?" Gojyo said, his voice muffled.

A few more minutes passed and Gojyo didn't seem like he'd be uncurling anytime soon. Getting worried, Zakuro crept closer. "Are you scared?" Gojyo didn't say anything. Zakuro bit his lip, wondering what to say. It was becoming increasingly obvious that Gojyo was claustrophobic, but Zakuro was at a loss about how to comfort him. He'd never been good at that sort of thing.

Gingerly, he extended his arm and awkwardly patted Gojyo's head. "I'm sure the others shall find a way out for us soon."

* * *

><p>"Oh my. Hakkai certainly seems worried." From where he stood beside Goku, Nii could see Hakkai and Sanzo arguing about how best to open up the cave.<p>

Goku glanced at Nii. "It's 'cause he knows Gojyo's afraid of small places," he said. "He gets panicky and breathes too fast and stuff."

A smirk appeared on Nii's face and he raised an eyebrow. "Really? How interesting."

"I guess so." He scratched at his chin thoughtfully, then smiled. "Y'know, the way you threw that alien was really cool!" Goku exclaimed.

Nii's smirk grew. "Maybe I can show the move to you some time."

* * *

><p>"Come on. You have to stand up some time. You can't just stay like that until we're rescued."<p>

Gojyo grunted in reply, but he had to grudgingly admit that Zakuro had a point. He knew that he probably looked stupid, cowering under the bench like a kid, but he couldn't help feeling stifled and crowded and uncomfortable. He wasn't hyperventilating like he used to, but he still felt like the walls were going to come crashing down on him if he moved even the slightest bit.

He felt Zakuro tugging on his arm and he forced himself to try to relax. "That cannot be comfortable. Come on out from under there."

Feeling stupid, Gojyo let the other man help him crawl out from his hiding place. He didn't open his eyes right away, not wanting to see the smug look that he imagined was probably on Zakuro's face.

When he finally did open his eyes, he saw that Zakuro was looking at him, an eyebrow slightly raised. "Do you feel better now?"

The scientist didn't look smug, and Gojyo was glad that he didn't look worried either. He couldn't stand anyone babying him when it came to his claustrophobia. "Yeah. But my ankle's still hurting like a bitch."

Zakuro rolled his eyes at the crude language but started rummaging around the boxes in the cave. He finally pulled out a med kit and opened it. Sitting down beside Gojyo's outstretched leg, he carefully began bandaging his ankle. Gojyo winced when Zakuro pulled the binding tight, but otherwise kept his mouth shut.

The silence was more than awkward, and Gojyo found himself talking just to fill the quiet of the cave. "You must be laughing at me right now, huh? Look at the big bad mercenary, scared of being inside a cave."

Zakuro snorted. "While I was thinking that it was highly unlikely that you would be claustrophobic, I do not find your fears amusing in any way." He closed the med kit and put it aside, looking at Gojyo with his strange eyes. "I am not that mean-spirited."

There was an even more awkward pause between them, and Gojyo regretted having even said anything. "Well. Thanks for patching up my ankle," he said, scratching at the back of his head.

"It was nothing," Zakuro said. He stood up and walked over to the entrance of the cave, looked at how it was filled in with rocks, and sighed. "I don't suppose you can think of anything to do while we're stuck in here, can you?"

Despite the fact that they were in a dark and dusty cave (or maybe precisely because they were in a dark and dusty cave and he needed to distract himself) Gojyo attempted a flirtatious tone and said, "Well, I can think of a few things I'd like to do."

Zakuro leveled a look at him that would have made Hakkai proud. "Are you incapable of thinking of anything else?" His eyes slid to Gojyo's bandaged ankle and a hint of an edge crept into his voice. "And I highly doubt that you would be up to much of anything given your current state."

"Is that a challenge?" Gojyo laughed.

Zakuro's entire demeanor immediately stiffened. "It most certainly was not!"

Gojyo sighed. "You know, you gotta learn how to relax a bit more. Don't be so stiff and serious all the time. It's bad for you."

"And you have to learn how to stop being such a lecher."

"I've never gotten any complaints before."

"Not everyone is as open as you are about such things," Zakuro said tartly. "I think you'd do well to keep that in mind."

Gojyo stopped himself from making another lewd comment just to annoy Zakuro. His usual response to the man was to be even more flirtatious than he usually was, but he was stuck in the cave with Zakuro and he didn't know how long it would be before the others would find a way to get them out. Plus, since his ankle was busted, he couldn't even go deeper into the cave to escape a potentially pissed off Zakuro.

"Sorry, man," Gojyo said. "I'll back off."

Zakuro looked at him askance, but said, "Thank you." He made his way back to where the food supplies were stacked and began looking through the boxes. "Do you want anything to eat? There's not much else we can do."

Gojyo shrugged. "Sure." Dried fruit and jerky wasn't so appealing, especially since they'd only brought it along in case the stuff on the planetoid was inedible, but it was still food.

Eating in awkward silence could only last for so long. When he was done, Gojyo wanted to go and grab something else to nibble on, but Zakuro objected—they didn't know how long they'd be stuck and he didn't want to lose their food supply.

"What do we do now, then?" Gojyo griped. "It's not like there're any games stashed away in here that we can play."

"We could talk," Zakuro suggested from where he was sitting in front of the food boxes, guarding them from any of Gojyo's advances.

"Seriously?" Gojyo replied. He'd moved to sit against the opposite cave wall, his back pressed against the rock. He let out a frustrated sound and said, "Okay, fine. Whatever."

They ended up talking about their respective jobs and how they'd ended up working for the IEEO. Gojyo talked about Hakkai, Goku, and Sanzo and how they had all first met while Zakuro told him about his first impressions of Nii. They talked about their childhoods (though Zakuro didn't press him for more details when Gojyo glossed over his) and their hobbies and interests.

Gojyo thought he'd be bored out of his skull—he was a man of action, all things considered—but surprisingly, he found that he didn't mind listening to Zakuro describing how he got into biology when he was still in high school, or how he finally managed to land a job in the IEEO despite his relative youth.

"I thought you were pretty young-looking for an IEEO science nerd," Gojyo mused.

Zakuro crossed his arms. "I am probably not much older than you are." He glanced at his wristwatch then and said, "Goodness. It's already past dinner time. We should eat and then retire for the night."

That much time had passed already? Now that Zakuro mentioned it, Gojyo noticed that it did seem a lot colder. Nights on the planetoid were surprisingly cold and Gojyo usually turned on the temperature regulator in his tent before he slept. He shivered and wrapped his arms around himself in an attempt to keep warm.

Gojyo gnawed on a strip of jerky, becoming increasingly uncomfortable as the temperature continued to slowly drop. He thought about their earlier conversation and once again marveled that he hadn't noticed how time had flown. And while he was still slightly worried that the cave was going to collapse in on them at any moment, he didn't feel the need to curl up into a useless ball and wait for the worst to happen.

"Zakuro," he said.

The scientist looked up from where he was contemplating his dried fruit. "Hm?"

"D'you have any ideas how to keep warm? 'Cause I seriously think I might freeze to death pretty soon."

A slightly alarmed look crossed Zakuro's face. "Did your men pack any spare blankets?"

Gojyo snorted. "Well, we'd packed these extra bed rolls and stuff, but you made us leave them behind, remember? Not enough room for your high tech stuff, you said." He paused. "I only know one way to keep warm and if I suggest it you're probably going to throw a rock at my head."

Zakuro groaned in disbelief. "This is horribly clichéd," he said, rubbing at his temples and looking like he was starting to get a headache.

* * *

><p>Zakuro told himself that it was not comfortable <em>at all<em> leaning against Gojyo's side, with Gojyo's arms wrapped around him. They had been lucky enough to find a tarp covering some of the boxes with the water-sensitive equipment and had spread it out on the floor of the cave as a makeshift bed. They'd deactivated the light globe before attempting to sleep, and Zakuro could barely make out the dim outline of Gojyo's face even after his eyes had adjusted.

But while he felt horribly embarrassed by the intimacy, Zakuro couldn't deny the fact that it _was _cold and that if it weren't for Gojyo's body heat, he would probably be worse off.

"What are you doing?" Gojyo asked.

Zakuro froze, completely and utterly mortified when he realized that he'd been moving closer to Gojyo, his face now practically pressed against the other man's neck. "Nothing. I am doing absolutely nothing at all." He attempted to move backwards but Gojyo's arms tightened their hold.

"S'okay, you know."

"What are you talking about?" Zakuro asked, placing a hand on Gojyo's chest in an attempt to push him away and put some distance between them. When the redhead didn't budge, he told himself it was because Gojyo was far stronger than he was and not because he was reluctant to leave the warm circle of his arms.

Gojyo shrugged. "I find you attractive and I think you think I am, too."

"I think we should end this conversation right here."

"Just saying—no strings attached." Gojyo laughed. "We're not going to be able to do anything really hardcore, though. I don't think my ankle could take it."

Zakuro hesitated, his hand clenching in the material of Gojyo's shirt. Yes, he did find Gojyo attractive, and it was true that he hadn't been with anyone for a long time, but, he wasn't really the type that indulged in one-night encounters. However, there was always a first time for everything, wasn't there? And he didn't think Gojyo was as shallow as he'd assumed he was. And it felt nice being held, the heat of Gojyo's body a welcome change to the coldness of the cave.

Making up his mind, Zakuro closed his eyes and pressed his mouth hesitantly against Gojyo's. The mercenary made a surprised sound, but quickly responded, one hand going up and burying itself in Zakuro's hair and the other one tightening around Zakuro's waist. He opened his mouth when he felt Gojyo's tongue against his lips and moaned when he felt the growing bulge in Gojyo's pants press against his leg.

A rock was digging into Zakuro's side and the cold air was more than a little unwelcome when Gojyo untangled his fingers from his hair and to undo Zakuro's pants, but when Gojyo wrapped a large, callused hand around him, that made everything feel better. He whimpered when Gojyo began sucking on his tongue, and he shuddered in pleasure.

Blindly, he reached down and fumbled with Gojyo's pants, finally managing to unzip and unbutton them. Gojyo's dick was hot and hard in his hands, and Zakuro pressed his thumb against the slit at the tip, making Gojyo growl. He batted away Zakuro's hand and pressed the hot line of his cock against Zakuro's before wrapping both of his hands around them.

Zakuro found it embarrassing how quickly he came after that, his cries echoing in the darkness of the cave. A few strokes later, Gojyo followed suit.

Zakuro was the first one to move, and he fumbled for a corner of the tarp they were lying on, using it to wipe up the mess between their stomachs. He tucked himself back into his pants and prodded at Gojyo until he did the same.

Zakuro settled back down beside Gojyo, and this time he didn't protest when the redhead threw an arm over his waist and spooned up behind him.

* * *

><p>"It's time to rise and shine!"<p>

Gojyo blearily opened his eyes and scowled. Almost half of the rocks that had blocked the cave entrance were gone and Goku was grinning at him from his perch on the rock pile. Sunlight streamed into the cave. Beside him, he felt Zakuro moving.

"Took you long enough," Gojyo said as he sat up.

Goku made a face. "Whatever." His nose wrinkled and he tilted his head. "Is it just me, or does it smell funny in here?"

"It's just you," Gojyo said hastily. He stood up quickly, forgetting about his ankle, and wincing at the pain that shot up his leg. It didn't give, though, and he leaned against the cave's wall. "Could you call Hakkai? My ankle got banged up during the fight."

"Sure thing!" Goku said, jumping off the rocks and heading off.

Zakuro sat up slowly, rubbing at his eyes. "We're free?"

"Yup. Cave's open and everything. The monkey went to call the others." Gojyo ran a hand through his hair when he saw Zakuro fidget. "Remember what I said: no strings attached. Don't worry about it."

Zakuro gave him an unreadable look. "I remember."

* * *

><p>The megalopolis of Shangri-la was located right in the middle of C1. It covered the entire continent of Chinda and was the largest city in all of the human colonies. It was also the base of operations for both the IEEO and the rebels that opposed it.<p>

Nii stood at the ship's window, looking out at Shangri-la. From that altitude, it looked like a child's model city. "Beautiful, isn't it?" he commented off-handedly to Sanzo. The blond scowled and ignored him. Nii glanced at him from the corner of his eye, thinking he was really nothing at all like Koumyou. "How's your dad? It's been so long since I last saw him."

"He's off-planet," Sanzo said shortly.

"Really? Do you know when he'll be back?"

"No." Sanzo's tone implied that he wouldn't tell Nii even if he did.

_Nothing at all like Koumyou._ Nii quickly grew bored of teasing Sanzo and distracted himself by thinking of his upcoming experiment. The final specimen was locked in a stasis chamber, and it wouldn't take long before he finished the genetic splicing.

He grinned as he watched the shipyards growing bigger as they descended.

* * *

><p>The week that they had to spend post-mission in the IEEO compound for debriefing and data download was extremely awkward. Gojyo knew that he'd told Zakuro that what had happened in the cave wasn't serious, but he didn't think that Zakuro would be able to keep it that way. The scientist couldn't really look him in the eye and he didn't get angry like he used to whenever Gojyo made dirty jokes or lewd comments.<p>

It was getting to the point that even Goku had noticed. Hakkai had asked about it, too, but he didn't push when Gojyo said that he didn't want to talk about the weirdness that existed between him and Zakuro. Sanzo simply didn't give a damn.

"I think you should talk to him," Hakkai finally said. "Whatever happened between the two of you in that cave, it's making working together difficult."

And because Gojyo usually listened to Hakkai's advice even if he didn't listen to common sense, he went to look for Zakuro. If the scientist didn't want to talk, then Gojyo'd make him sit his skinny ass down and at least listen.

He stalked through the halls of the compound, looking for Zakuro. It didn't take him long to spot the man walking down the hallway, datapad in hand. Gojyo ran after him, grateful that Hakkai had managed to fix up his ankle with one of the medcubes at the base.

"We need to talk," he said, catching up with Zakuro and taking hold of his arm.

"I must disagree," Zakuro replied, trying to free himself. "And I have a meeting to attend—"

An explosion knocked both of them off of their feet and threw them onto the floor. Outside the window, Gojyo could see the smoldering remains of the laboratory building and a hulking figure moving out of the wreckage.

"What is that?" Zakuro asked, his voice higher than usual. Gojyo expected him to go hysterical at any moment.

The creature was as tall as the lab building had been, and as Gojyo and Zakuro watched, it casually leaned down and crushed the security vehicles that had arrived at the scene of the explosion. Gojyo didn't know anything about alien life forms, but the monster looked like it was a hodge-podge of different creatures haphazardly thrown together.

It slowly straightened up and began walking, heading directly for the building Gojyo and Zakuro were in.

"Oh my god, oh my god!" Beside him, Zakuro had begun to panic. Gojyo grabbed his arm again and yanked him to his feet.

"This isn't the time to lose your head!" he snapped. "We have to move! Come on!"

The ground shook with every step the monster took, and it was becoming harder to keep their balance. Gojyo managed to drag Zakuro out of the building's back entrance where they ran into Hakkai, Sanzo, and Goku.

"What is that thing?" Sanzo yelled.

"I don't know, but if it isn't stopped, it'll reach the city," Hakkai said grimly.

Sanzo looked at Goku. "Is the fighter plane fueled?"

Goku nodded. "Yeah, it is."

"Let's go then."

Hakkai looked at Gojyo. "Shall we? I think ours is ready as well."

"What're we waiting for then?" Gojyo made to run after Hakkai, but suddenly found himself face-to-face with Zakuro.

"Don't go. You'll be killed!" Zakuro said, his hands gripping desperately to Gojyo's arms.

"Well, I can't just stand by and let it go rampaging into the city," Gojyo said. "Not when I can do something about it."

Zakuro was silent for a few moments, then he pulled Gojyo down for a hard kiss. When he let go of the redhead, he was breathing hard. "Go, then."

Gojyo grinned at him. "Don't worry. I'll be back before you know it. We still have to talk, you know."

* * *

><p>It was almost disappointingly anticlimactic how easily the monster went down once they found its weak spot. After that, Gojyo finally sat down to talk with Zakuro. As expected, the talk turned into a fight, and Gojyo had the overwhelming urge to punch in Zakuro's face.<p>

"You have no sense of commitment whatsoever!" Zakuro exclaimed dramatically. "First that incident on the planetoid, and then that kiss! You expect me to pretend that none of that happened?"

Gojyo wanted to rip out his hair in frustration. "Gimme a break! You were the one that kissed me! And that thing in the cave—we agreed that it was no strings attached."

Zakuro opened his mouth and Gojyo braced himself for more screaming. Suddenly, Zakuro's eyes narrowed and he closed his mouth, his brow furrowing in concentration. The abrupt turn of events threw Gojyo for a loop, and he waited until Zakuro had shaken himself out of his reverie.

The scientist leveled a very serious look at Gojyo and said, "I would like to take you out in monster-free Shangri-la."

Gojyo stared at him blankly.

"Like I previously stated, you are not the type to commit," Zakuro said with the tone that someone usually used when explaining a difficult concept to a child. "Be that as it may, I still think it would be a waste not to give this thing between us a chance." He frowned. "You cannot deny that there is something between us. You said so yourself, back in the cave."

"I said I found you attractive," Gojyo protested.

"You are taking me out to dinner tonight." Zakuro narrowed his eyes. "Unless you wish me to tell Sanzo that it was you who got Goku drunk yesterday."

"It wasn't like that! It was a we-survived-a-monster-attack party!"

Zakuro's eyes got narrower.

"Okay, fine!"


End file.
